Our View: New Bedford gets into the act

The Zeiterion Theatre may be unique in any number of ways, but there's one thing about New Bedford's grand centerpiece of performing arts that's not so grand.

The Zeiterion Theatre may be unique in any number of ways, but there's one thing about New Bedford's grand centerpiece of performing arts that's not so grand.

Mayor Jon Mitchell hit it on the head when he informed Zeiterion Theatre Inc., the nonprofit that runs the city-owned building, that the "long-standing informal arrangements" that have defined the venue's operation over 30 years shortchange everyone: the Z, the building, city residents, taxpayers, patrons of the arts and the numerous community groups that use the building.

But he aims to change that without waiting another day.

Mitchell has rounded up financial support in the business community to stabilize the Z's budget for the remainder of this fiscal year, and he's secured full political support from the local legislative delegation to ensure its viability, this year and into the future.

Kudos to him for his plan to put this cultural icon on firm footing.

Katherine Knowles, executive director of the nonprofit Z, said their longtime year-round management of the building without compensation created a perpetual state of fiscal instability. Mitchell's decision to compensate the Z with $60,000 for this work through the end of the fiscal year on June 30 immediately rights that wrong.

The mayor also hopes to see this spring the start of more than a half-million dollars of facade restoration — on top of $300,000 committed by his predecessor, Scott Lang. He intends to apply for state preservation funds requiring a 50 percent city match for exterior work on the Penler space, to continue paying all utility expenses and to continue to provide free use of the building for the nonprofit's own programming (The Z uses the building 60 days a year, but provides uncompensated, full-service management the other 300 days the theater is put to use).

Long-term, the mayor aims to establish a contract with a theater management organization (he assures Knowles in his letter that the Z will be "a very competitive candidate") so that high-quality performing arts remain downtown while protecting the taxpayers' interests.

State Sen. Mark Montigny has been a staunch supporter of the Z, serving as a Zeiterion trustee while a college student and bringing funding to the theater as an elected official.

"I am determined that the state will stay committed," he told The Standard-Times on Wednesday, confident that the city's pledge and private support are "the kind of spirit that will sustain the theater."

The influence of the arts and its importance to cultural and economic development in New Bedford is immeasurable, and Mitchell's leadership and promise of support for the Z and the building are further proof of the city's progress.

As pleased as Knowles is — deservedly so — she reminds that the Z is a business with a budget of $2.8 million. With 1,175 seats, the ticket prices necessary to bring acts like Lyle Lovett, Olympia Dukakis, "Fiddler on the Roof" and "Singin' in the Rain" to the theater would be four or five times as high if it weren't for the help of generous supporters.

Knowles launched the Z's 30th season with a call to SouthCoast: It's time to vote with your support if you believe it to be important to the region.

The city, its administration and legislative delegation have cast their votes, loud and clear. We cast ours, and we urge you to cast yours, too, for the thousand ways it has enriched our lives and will continue to do so.